1st a correction: there was a small demonstration (AP reports a crowd of 60) in front of the Danish Embassy in Kuala Lumpur Friday to hand a letter to the Danish Embassy demanding an apology from the Danish govt and to "take serious measures to prevent Jyllands Posten from repeating the same mistake".
Re the French ban on headscarves: yes it's silly (although wearing scarves is in many cases not a matter of choice, but of considerable social pressure), but I'm prepared to believe that the history of the growth of French secularism had something to do with it as well -- it was a rather tortured history, from the little I know. Should they re-think the legacy of that history? Yes, given that they now live in a different world -- and it's 'amusing' to see the denial, and the emptiness of multi-culturalism when push comes to shove, an emptiness revealed in all this talk of "our culture". The Brits had an earlier experience, to do with the Sikh turban and the requirement of uniforms -- I think it was London Transport -- and the Sikh turban won. So, they are stuck with religious modes of dress, although also desperately trying to assert "our culture".
Also, don't forget that Turkey has (or is that now 'had') a ban on headscarves as well -- emanating from Turkey's own tortured history with secularism.
kj